Who is Polly Block?

Polly Block was a widely known and highly respected midwife. Midwives from all over the United States frequently sought her counsel, because of her broad experience with special birthing techniques. She was invited by a scholar from a national foundation to assist in research on birthing customs in different cultures but home obligations prevented her from accepting that honor. Her special interest was the effect of herbs on pregnancy, labor, and delivery of birthing mothers. She developed an extensive home nursing file, which stressed diet, massage therapy, natural food supplements, and advanced first aid techniques as the basis for preventive health care and home preparedness. She was often invited to share her data with leading researchers and practitioners in the field of home birth.

What Is Polly-Jean 5-Week Antenatal Formula?

Polly Block writes in her book Polly’s Birth Book – Obstetrics for the Home: “We have found the Polly-Jean Formula–an herbal combination that gravidas begin taking five weeks prior to anticipated date of delivery–to be a boon to the home birth movement. It assists in the following ways:

Much easier labor and delivery.

Longer and easier labors for women who tend to have precipitous births.

Shorter and easier labors for women who tend to have long labors.

Bigger dilation before discomfort arises.

Minimization of postpartum bleeding when taken in conjunction with the “Good Program” (the “Good Program” is explained in Polly’s Birth Book).

Shorter periods before lochia stops.

Other formulas on the market have helped many mothers, but over the years midwives have found that these formulas did not assist enough in preventing hemorrhage in women with borderline anemia, the Rh-negative factor, and other conditions. We found that when pennyroyal was included in the formula, bleeding continued to be heavier than it should be. We also found that black cohosh seemed to increase the normally stepped up production of estrogen, adding to the hemorrhage problem. Jeannne Johnson and I eliminated both these herbs when we developed our formula. Midwives who recommend this formula for use have frequently reported only 1 teaspoon to 2 tablespoons of bleeding with the placenta separation in normal deliveries. Even in problem deliveries, only ½ to ¾ cup blood loss (considered normal) was reported. If these assessments are correct, the results of the Formula are phenomenal.” (Polly’s Birth Book–Obstetrics for the Home – pg. 155-156).

What Is Contained in the Polly-Jean Formula?

The Polly-Jean Five-Week Antenatal Formula contains the following herbs:

Squawvine (Diuretic; helps to make childbirth wonderfully easy—especially when used with red raspberry leaves; good for uterine troubles, female complaints.)

Blue Cohosh (Regulates menstrual flow; brings on effective labor contractions; for chronic uterine trouble; leukorrhea, which is a discharge, sometimes profuse, of whitish or yellowish mucus from the vagina; and inflammation of the vagina.)

Blessed Thistle (Great power in purifying and circulating of the blood; strengthens the heart; lifts spirits; excellent in puberty; aids in the production of quality mother’s milk.)

False Unicorn (Female herbal director: balances the direction of female changes, puts functions of reproductive organs in right perspective. If fetus is malformed, or an uncorrectable problem exists, false unicorn will encourage spontaneous miscarriage in early stage of pregnancy; if all is well and some other cause has threatened miscarriage, false unicorn will change directions to retain fetus in utero to successful conclusion of pregnancy. Assists in the discharge of retained placenta and membrane fragments after delivery.)

Wild Ginger (Enhances other herbs in their action upon the system; good for diarrhea which sometimes precedes labor; prevents griping; especially good for action in lower parts of the body.)

Lobelia (Antispasmodic, nervine; improves oxygenation of blood; wonderful for help with pain.)

Wild Yam (Good to combine with squawvine; in frequent, small doses allays nausea; relaxing and soothing to nerves; one of best herbs for pain in childbirth; good for discomfort in late pregnancy; combine with ginger to prevent miscarriage.)

Bayberry Root bark (Astringent properties suppress bleeding; aids in the separation of the placenta; increases flow of urine; for relief of cramps when uterus is contracting; stimulates the uterus to function properly.)

Polly-Jean Formula Dosage

This product is 400 capsules, which is a full 5+ week supply, depending on the dose you choose to take. Similar products are sold in quantities of 100-150 capsules and do not inform you that one bottle is not enough for 5 weeks, so you would end up needing to order more, possibly getting them too late. Your purchase of Polly Jean 5-Week Antenatal Formula covers your entire prenatal need. Polly further writes on page 156 of her book: “Six to nine capsules a day are recommended. It is recommended that dosages begin the FIRST week (five weeks before due date) with two capsules in the morning and two nightly, before meals. Increase the SECOND week (four weeks antenatally) to two capsules, three times a day. Increase the THIRD and FOURTH weeks up to about three or four capsules, three times a day, according to individual tolerance levels. Maintain this dosage until delivery. The formula can also be used a week to ten days postpartum advantageously.” In email contact I had with Polly before she passed away, she said I should include the following information here: “The Polly-Jean Five-Week Antenatal Formula tends to create a balance in the stepped-up hormones toward the end of pregnancy. Over the years women have reported that they have found no better ‘female corrective’ than the Polly-Jean formula, pregnant or not.”

What People Have Said About Polly’s Formula

“Dear Charity, Over three years ago, I found out that I was expecting my fourth child. My previous midwife had advised me not to have any more children due to extremely long labors accompanied by excessive blood loss/hemorrhaging. Through research and prayer, I found the Polly Jean 5-Week Antenatal Formula and ordered it. By that time, I knew I was expecting TWINS and the stakes were even higher, as multiple births have bleeding problems due to the overly stretched uterus. Because my presenting twin was breech, my midwife’s back up doctor insisted that I have a C-section. Every doctor that I consulted said the same thing. Finally, at the suggestion of the back-up doctor, I met with one of her professors at UF Shands teaching hospital in Jacksonville (they also have one in Gainesville). He was known as a breech expert. To make a long story short, I ended up delivering the twins in the operating room at Shands Hospital on a narrow metal gurney, feet in stirrups, bright lights and about 20 medical professionals looking on – it was the most amazing birth experience of my life. The twins were two days late when I went into labor naturally. We woke up the children, dropped them off at friends, and headed for the hospital. By the time I got there, I was already 10 cms!!!!! We had to WAIT for the doctor to arrive, so I cannot put a proper time on my labor. From the time my water broke to the time I was checked at the hospital was only a few hours. The whole process, from start to finish, was less than 5 hours!!! (Pretty amazing, considering my last labor was about three days, followed by the usual heavy blood loss.) The breech delivery went without a hitch. In fact it was EASY. My doctor was AMAZED at my lack of blood loss and asked me what I ate during pregnancy. (I had only been seeing him for a few weeks, so had not told him about my regime.) I told him about the Polly Jean Formula and he wanted to know everything in it. He said in all his years of teaching and practice, he had never seen such little blood loss in a twin pregnancy. Not to mention the fact that I was carrying 15 pounds of baby!!! In short, I cannot say enough about the Polly Jean Formula and recommend it to all my pregnant friends. I thank God that I found it and truly consider it an answer to prayer. I look forward to using it again, now that I am expecting Blessing #6, a precious boy, due February 9. Thanks are not enough to express my gratitude to you for making it available. Gratefully, Laura”

“Polly’s formula was a fantastic supplement for my home birth. I was amazed at how I gave birth so easily in less than three hours!” – Marie, with baby #5

“Wow! This was the fastest labor of my 6 births! I usually labor for at least 10+ hours, but this time I had him in under 4! I could really tell the frequent Braxton Hicks contractions were helping to get things ready. I will definitely be using your herb formula again if we have another baby.” Leslie

“I had an awesome labor and birth- hardly any bleeding at all, where, with my other births, I have lost too much blood. Even my recovery was very quick and easy.” – Sarah

“Recently I was introduced to your herb formula by a client. She told me she was using it, but I didn’t really put all that much stock into the claims (oh, I believe in the benefits of herbs and such and even used RRL tea for some of my own pregnancies, just some of the claims seemed a bit stretched). I have served as midwife for this client at 2 previous births and know her to labor long and hard with too much blood loss at the end. This labor was so different, though! She labored very efficiently and the baby was born in under 5 hours, start to finish. She had minimal blood loss and was up and about very quickly. I am just VERY impressed and can see that it really does live up to the claims. I will be recommending it to my clients from now on (can I get a referral fee for that – lol – just kidding!).” – Carrie

“I recently gave birth to our fifth baby. I have a history of long, slow labors. During past pregnancies, I’ve taken red raspberry leaf tea and evening primrose oil, and once an herbal formula similar to PJ’s, all with an aim to preparing my uterus and cervix for labor. The results were nonexistent to mild at best. I’d either have no Braxton-Hicks contractions at all (that I could feel), or mild ones that petered out a week or two before birth. My non-induced labors were long and dragged-out, with several days of prodromal labor before “the main event”. This time was different! I took the recommended final-month regimen of PJ’s and had 4.5 weeks of very strong Braxton-Hicks contractions. It really felt like they were “doing something” for a change. Labor was quick and efficient, and we had a wonderful, easy birth. PJ’s is an exceptional product, and if we are blessed with another baby, I definitely plan to order it again. Thanks, Charity, for making PJ’s available to your customers!” – Kathleen

***Disclaimer***

Please keep in mind, as with all natural supplements, proof of their ability to do as they claim is based upon word of mouth use and not scientifically proven evidence. BirthJunkie.com and Blessed Beginnings makes no claims that this or any of our formulas are scientifically proven effective; we simply believe, based upon usage of these and other herbs over time, that the formula may help by nourishing your body’s regular functions and helping to improve your immune and body system responses. We understand that some herbs work differently on different individuals and therefore advise that you consult with a health care provider prior to taking any supplements to be assured of how they may affect you based upon your overall health and use of other medications.

5 thoughts on “Polly-Jean Five-Week Antenatal Formula”

New website has just gone live and we are working out some bugs. Sorry! Will get to that. I think it is active in the shopping cart, so if you go to the shopping cart from another product, you should see AA in there.

I am looking for the information that was shared on the old website about the Polly Block 5 week formula. It was very helpful to hear that others experienced much less blood loss etc. during deliveries. Please share the testimonials again. I understand that these aren’t proof of anything, but it is helpful to hear others stories. Midwife birth stories are helpful, but so are stories of the herbal supplements use. Thank you!